Amy is back with a recap of the fabulous – and inspiring – “Boxes in Bloom” event thrown by the generous team behind Operation Shower. Read on for her full recap… plus some great party planning tips that are both stylish AND eco-friendly!

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Operation Shower: Mission Boxes In Bloom Accomplished (In Eco-Chic Style)
{Event Recap by Amy Belle Isle}

I am so excited to bring you a recap of the recent success that Operation Shower and Cloud B had with our “Boxes in Bloom” Mother’s Day Showers at Ft. Hood and Scott AFB.  Between the attendees and the boxes we sent to moms who could not make it, we honored 65 women and families with amazing gifts for the new little ones. Just look at some of the wonderful donations from our sponsors!  We at Operation Shower cannot thank them enough for their contributions.

Our goal this year was to not only throw great events but to make them as Eco-Friendly as possible. It’s really easier (and cuter) than you might think! (Go here for more ideas on throwing an Eco-Friendly party.)

All of the boxes and gift wrap are made of recycled materials. Nashville Wraps so generously donated recycled wrap and tissue that we used to make our boxes more special, and we used the whimsical Whimsy Press gift wrap for our centerpieces. Not only did they liven up the table, but they also contained raffle prizes and helped ensure everything we did had a dual-purpose. Don’t forget to recycle the little amount of recycled paper you do use! 

Some lucky moms also got the adorable teddy bears as their prize. Those cute little flower placecard holders from a Favor Affair? Well, those went home with the moms to be used to hold photos of their new babies. IKEA bud vases? Yep, those were favors, too. Flowers? You got it, those were given as thank you gifts to our helpers from each Base.  Finally, the cards are from the Arbor Foundation as we planted a tree in honor of each baby.

We also were able to not only make the moms feel like they were Queen(s) For A Day by using real dishes and linens instead of paper, but we were able to help avoid paper waste. Thanks to Aramark for donating the items for Ft. Hood and thanks to Kim at Head of the Table for making our Scott AFB have a great punch of color with your donation of fun coral and white dishes and stemware.  But there is no coral in the gift wrap…. No problem! Just remember you can always incorporate your accent color in your flowers or other decorative elements to tie it all together. The punch of coral roses and alstromeria really made these florals fun to create!

What makes a great party even better? Great food! Thanks to Let Us Do The Cooking and Works of Art Cakes for providing food and cake for Ft. Hood and Hollyberry Catering and Jennifer’s Pharmacy for donating deliciousness to Scott AFB. One word: YUM.

While every party doesn’t have the luxury of having a professional photographer, we were spoiled enough to have two: Angela Breckenridge and Julie Enstall.  If you have a special event coming up in either of these areas, I recommend checking them out! These ladies not only spent their Saturday donating their talents but also provided each mom with very special portrait donation offers. We are so grateful to each of you for helping us capture these events on film.

Thank you, Jenn, for letting me share our event with all of your readers and I hope you all will not only check out Operation Shower but also be able to use some of these ideas for your next Eco-chic party.

Blessings and a safe return home to all of our deployed soldiers,
Amy

P.S. Be sure and check out the Operation Shower website to links to all of our sponsors. Those of you with kids are gonna want these products for yourself! Trust me.

I came across an image of these “Squishy Bowls” in this month’s issue of Real Simple (June 2009) and was instantly intrigued by both the name and mod look. You can use these bowls to serve dishes like pasta & salad on when your on a picnic/at an outdoor BBQ, then squash them into your bag for hassle-free, space-conserving transportation on the way home. They’re made of food-safe silicone, easy to clean, and come in fun colors like Tangerine and Tomato (see bottom pic).

A little investigation into the company behind these bowls – Guyot Designs – revealed lots more “smart+cool” designs like the Squishy Bowls. For example, the Firefly accessory turns your wide-mouth water bottle into a lantern!

The Firefly lid is retro-fitted with an LED light that spreads a warm glow throughout the bottle, and you can control/adjust the levels from “nightlight” to “reading light”!

Save money, save the earth: Guyot’s TapGuard accessory (pictured below) replaces hundreds of disposable bottles. Add it to your widemouth bottle and you’ve got carbon-filtered water from any safe source!

Speaking of “green bottles” – check out these Stainless Steel beauties:

According to Guyot, “Every bottle we produce carries 100lbs of verified green house gas emissions reductions- making our bottles not just carbon neutral, but carbon negative!.

Next up: The Utensils: “a functional way to bring everything you need from the kitchen to the trail”. Twirl your pasta, sip your soup, spread on the PB, or cut your food – all with this handy set. Also available in a Microbites version for kids!

Check out guyotdesigns.com for more cool products like these. (All 5 available colors of Squishy Bowls pictured below.)

Loving these stylish & earth-friendly entertaining products from Branch:

• 16″ Serving Trays in Colors by Bambu – 100% organically-grown bamboo, non-toxic water-based adhesive, natural lacquer (derived from the cashew nut tree), food-safe polyurethane. ($24 ea)

• Vessel: Ivy by Perch! – created with low-fire ceramic & non-toxic glaze / great home accessory that can be re-purposed as a pretty centerpiece vase for all sorts of occasions. ($64)

• Tiny Basket Bowl by Perch! – created with low-fire ceramic & non-toxic glaze. ($26 ea)

• Curvy Servers by Bambu – made from 100% organically-grown bamboo, natural food-safe wood oil, natural lacquer, food-safe polyurethane. ($14 ea)

• “Outside-In” Bowls (Set of 4) – made from 100% organically-grown bamboo, non-toxic water-based adhesive, natural lacquer, food-safe polyurethane ($56 / set)

These multi-purpose shopping totes from Smudge Ink are bold, colorful, and eco-chic! Made of 30% recycled material, reusable, and fully recyclable with other household plastics. Several designs available. ($9.95 each or $29.95/pack of 3 different designs)

(Great Mother’s Day gift idea too!)

I’m loving the vibe of these chic chipboard postcards from Prismera. Available in Jungle and Heart, each card features a hand drawn illustration by designer Laura Su and is printed in soy-based inks on 100% recycled paper. $3 each at prismeradesign.com

Even though weddings are usually done on a much larger scale than at-home parties, the level of creativity that goes into the receptions makes them a wonderful resource for drawing inspiration & ideas from for everyday celebrations & holiday parties as well, even if you just emulate a few of them or modify the ideas to fit your budget.

For example, this gorgeous wedding reception, which was designed by event planner Beth Helmstetter (who you might remember from the fun & unique “Eclectic Baby Shower” we featured earlier) – has some great inspiration for fall or winter celebrations – from Thanksgiving to Christmas to bridal showers or engagement parties held this time of year.

Read on for the details, as told by Beth, as well as lots of “Style Steal Tips” at the end of the post…

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Louisa and John are this amazingly down-to-earth pair with a love for nature and the desire to ensure the guests were comfortable at all times. For this reason, we decided to go with a residential yet organic feel when designing the day.

To bring in the natural feel, we used many elements including an old tree stump in lieu of a cake plate, pine cones as place card holders and bark to hold the centerpieces. Also, fresh herbs adorned everything from the ceremony arch to each guest napkin.

For me, linens are one of the most important details when designing an event. Not only are they the canvas for the table design, but napkins are the one decorative element that guests actually touch and feel. In Louisa and John’s case, we went for a Russian linen in the shade of wheat (pictured at top), which was luxurious to the touch and served as the perfect canvas for the dinner tables, all while being completely organic materials.

As guests arrived, they were offered Reed’s Ginger Ale (the bride’s favorite) and were greeted to the sounds of Cale, a hot Spanish Guitar group from Los Angeles. After vows were exchanged, Louisa and John ensured every guest felt a part of their day by including them in group pictures and greeting everyone individually.

For dinner, Louisa choice buffet service which included all fresh and organic ingredients from the local community including scallops on the half shell, herbed salmon and fresh peaches drizzled in local white honey.

Guests spent the evening conversing and dancing to the sounds of a DJ who spun Louisa and John’s favorite lounge music throughout the event.

{Photography: Jose Villa Photo}

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Thanks again to Beth for sharing these gorgeous pics! And now for some take-home tips:

STYLE STEAL TIPS for home celebrations:

• Use Birch Vases or Birch Vase Sleeves filled with a few large white flowers and herbs or other greenery as centerpieces (Resources: Signals.com and

• Go for a color palette of bright white, wheat/light beige, and earthy green

• Accent napkins with fresh herbs or (or a less-expensive greenery option, like the bouquets of mixed greenery available at grocery stores – usually for around $5 – or event leaves from your backyard. White blossoms also look gorgeous as napkin accents.

• Use inexpensive aluminum buckets (available at stores like Home Depot) filled with ice to create a pretty, chilled display for bottled drinks like organic beer or sparkling sodas and water

• Large mason jars or candy jars simply labeled and embellished with twine make great serving containers for drinks like lemonade, sangria, punch or cucumber-infused water. Float fruit, lemon, or cucumber slices in the drink for a pretty display.

• When it comes to food, it’s all about presentation! How great does the wheat grass-covered serving tray used to serve the scallops look?! And the use of all-white serveware really makes the colors in the food pop.

• Choose party favors that coordinate with the “natural theme” like the unique-shaped Tea Forte favors pictured above. ($20 for 20 at beau-coup.com)

Going green never looked so good! These super stylish, eco-friendly designs by Whimsy Press are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and printed on 100% recycled paper with soy-based inks.

The Proud Peacock design (pictured at top) is so super cute… I think we’re going to have to design an entire party theme around it…what do you think? Of course the other designs are pretty fabulous as well…

Pictured above: D-vine Inspiration. Pictured below: Madame Butterfly and Mod Floral. Which one is your favorite?

One of my favorite local designers – Mel Lim – has recently added some amazing new additions to her gorgeous Joy by Mel Lim line: a stationery, decor & accessories collection that seems to be expanding by the minute! And with good reason, I might add: Mel’s unique designs and passion for her craft definitely shines through in all of her products. She recently added these fabulous recycled cotton totes (2 of the 3 available designs are pictured above), and a sampling of her beautiful flat cards are pictured below. Click here to check out the entire Joy collection!

A common misconception about "partying green" is that it means the look of the party has to literally be green – or at least based on earthy shades of green and brown. That’s why I was so happy to see this beautiful red and lilac table as the headliner image for author Danny Seo ’s "How to Throw a Green Party at Home " feature over at epicurious.com!

The article includes tips for everything from eco-chic centerpieces and party decor to food, drinks, and activities (S’Mores , anyone?). There’s even a DIY guide for creating a biodegradable pinata ! How cool is that? Click here for full details .

Sarah Cihat’s Rehabilitated Dishware collection is so creative and unique! Cihat takes used or unwanted ceramics from second-hand stores and resurfaces them with modern colors and interesting designs, extending the life of the dishes and essentially transforming them into entirely new pieces!

The dinnerware features contemporary silhouettes such as birds, animals, anchors, tatoo-style roses, fleur-de-lis, and more… even an astronaut and a rocker chick design (both pictured below)

Click here to view more designs and get the full scoop on Cihat’s Rehabilitated Dinnerware line, including retailer and custom ordering info!